While many people enjoy indoor climbing as a hobby and have no plans to take it further, for others, it’s just the start of training and getting their bodies ready for what they really want to do – outdoor rock climbing on real rock faces.
Indoor climbing walls are a great place to start as they give you a safe and easy environment where you can learn to climb and practice your skills, but it’s no replacement for the outdoors with the changing scenery and weather all around you.
There are several different styles of outdoor rock climbing to be aware of when starting out:
Sports Climbing or Lead Climbing
This is the most common type of leader climb where the lead person will use already set bolts along a pre-determined route and will build an anchor at the top for the climbers to use. These are pre-planned climbing routes that will have been used many times before.
Traditional Climbing
Traditional climbing is also led by a lead climber, but in this case, the leader will use temporary protection items throughout the route to help protect climbers from falls. Once the last climber has ascended, the protection will be removed from the route.
With traditional climbing, there is no pre-determined route as the climbers place their own equipment as they go, so this is more adventurous and equally potentially more risky.
Climbing Aids
This style of climbing sees the climber using devices attached to protection. He then climbs on the devices to make his way up. Generally, this approach would be used on very steep or long climbs.
Free Climbing
Free climbing is when climbers make their way up using only the rock’s natural features, relying on rope and equipment only to prevent a fall.
Free Soloing
This is where the climber performs completely free of any equipment, relying on their skills to make the ascent and without any protective equipment.
When starting out as a beginner with outdoor rock climbing, you will need to develop your gear and equipment, which you will understand more and more about as your skills and experience using it grow.
Here is a quick round-up of some of the gear you will need when starting to outdoor rock climb as a beginner:
Rock climbing shoes
These are the most essential gear you will ever buy; after all, they connect you to the rock you are climbing on. When starting, choose climbing shoes that are for all-round use and which are comfortable.
Climbing ropes
These are designed to protect you should you fall – there are dynamic ropes that have the elasticity to absorb your energy if you were to fall and static ropes that are used to anchor and pull equipment up, for example.
A climbing harness
This is how the ropes are connected to the climber, and they come in various styles. Go for comfort when choosing your first harness and one with enough loops for your ropes and belay device.
A belay device
This is the mechanical friction element that you use to control your rope. It provides an easy way to stop the rope if you were to fall and can be used to manage the descent on a rope when traveling down a climb.
A carabiner
A carabiner is a metal loop that has spring-loaded openings, and they are used as a connector between ropes. There are locking and non-locking versions used to connect the rope to an anchor or attach the climber to the middle of a rope.
Protection devices
Several different protection devices are available, but the aim is to provide a climber with the ability to create a temporary anchor point on any rock during a climb to help support their ascent and prevent a fall.
Climbing helmet
While most indoor climbers don’t bother with helmets, when climbing outdoors, it is advisable to wear a protective helmet in case of falling debris or equipment and to protect your head if you fall and crash against the rocks.
If you are deciding to try rock climbing as a total beginner, it is always advisable to do it under supervision until you have mastered all the techniques and become familiar with the skills and equipment needed.
Following a sports climb is a fun and good place to start as a beginner, and as you get more adventurous, you can join an outdoor rock climbing group and venture out onto the more exciting traditional-style climb routes to really test your skills.
